Disinfect 2nd hand tank

[saiwong]

Hello everyone,

I recently acquired a 2nd hand aquarium and wish to make it safe for my tropical fish.
The seller also gave me some accessories (e.g. pump, heater, ornaments) but won't be using them and will buy brand new replacements.

From what I heard from the seller, the aquarium has not been used for a month.
Initially thought, since a month has passed it is like completing 'quaranteen period' and any bacteria that might have been there would have died.

However, now thinking of doing extra clean with vinegar or bleach. What do you think ?
If just cleaning the tank would you use vinegar, bleach or consider 'quaranteen period' to have already been completed ?

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by saiwong

Hello everyone,

I recently acquired a 2nd hand aquarium and wish to make it safe for my tropical fish.
The seller also gave me some accessories (e.g. pump, heater, ornaments) but won't be using them and will buy brand new replacements.

From what I heard from the seller, the aquarium has not been used for a month.
Initially thought, since a month has passed it is like completing 'quaranteen period' and any bacteria that might have been there would have died.

However, now thinking of doing extra clean with vinegar or bleach. What do you think ?
If just cleaning the tank would you use vinegar, bleach or consider 'quaranteen period' to have already been completed ?

I've always used bleach to disinfect a used tank or if I had disastrous disease issues with the tank. The method I use is to fill the tank with water, add enough bleach to see any algae growth or film on the glass turn white then really flush the tank out well. When you refill the tank for use, triple the dechlorinator dose. You then have the option of either using a test fish to make sure the water is safe or use a pool chlorine test kit to see if any bleach is still in the water. ( I always have extra fish so I use the test fish method. )
Make sure the bleach you use has no additives or perfumes. You want straight bleach or pool chlorine.

[Jacky12]

What Andy says. He knows what he’s talking about. I never disinfected any of my used tanks & got stuck with a huge snail infestation in my 44 G corner tank. Snail eggs from that tank are the most likely source. I never added live plants which caused snail problems in other tanks.

[larochem595]

I have used hydrogen peroxide, spray it and let it sit til it stops bubbling, then rinse it good. I like it because it breaks down into water so nothing harmful for the fish.